PACIFIC: Papua New Guinea Vanilla Profits Spike Local Spending

PAPUA NEW GUINEA VANILLA PROFITS SPIKE LOCAL SPENDING

PORT MORESBY, Papua New Guinea (The National, Aug. 20) – Vanilla earnings 
from Papua New Guinea’s Northwestern province of East Sepik are making waves 
in the Northeastern coastal town of Lae.

Last week, Boroko Motors’ Lae branch displayed four out of five trucks bought 
with cash for about K89,000 each by growers from Maprik.

Another group from the same area bought several used utilities from Boroko 
Motors with cash.

All purchases totaled over K550,000 in a single transaction.

Four vanilla growers, Francis Kuleka, Capson Kandi, Hosea J & Gambano B and 
Similo Zacheus will be the proud owners of the trucks, which were put on 
Consort Shipping for transportation to Wewak.

The same Maprik-based group also purchased five tons of copper iron roofing 
from Pacific Steel in Lae.

Otto Wangillen, a former Finance Department assistant secretary, is back home 
in Maprik getting involved in the lucrative vanilla trade.

He said an estimated K5 million is circulated per month in the vanilla 
growing areas.

"Most of this money is sunk into vehicles and permanent homes," Wangillen 
said. "None of the money is put into banks because the saving guidelines are 
restrictive."

Wewak only has branches for Bank South Pacific and Westpac.

Wangillen said he had come to Lae to shop for cars because the motor car 
companies operating out of Wewak were inundated with orders.

Boroko Motors Lae sales manager Michael Ekri said: "While the rest of the 
economy is staggering and struggling, the vanilla growing areas are 
prospering - mainly the Sepik districts such as Maprik, Drekikir and Wosera. 
Boroko Motors is envisaging more orders for the popular Isuzu trucks and 
Nissan Patrol utilities in the coming weeks and months."

The company has begun a marketing strategy in place to particularly target 
the vanilla farmers under the banner of "Vanilla Wildfire Deals!"

Ekri has plans to visit the Sepik plains next week to further promote and 
market Boroko Motors products.

August 21, 2003

The National: www.thenational.com.pg/


SOURCE: Pacific Islands Report